Friday, 1 July 2016

Ryan Giggs: Manchester United legend leaving after 29 years at club

Ryan Giggs has ended his 29-year stay at Manchester United by agreeing a settlement with the Old Trafford club.

United are expected to release an official statement in the coming days.
Giggs,
42, had a year remaining on his contract as assistant manager but new
boss Jose Mourinho intends to fill that role with long-time friend Rui
Faria.
Unable to reach agreement over another role at the Premier
League club, Giggs, who made a record 963 appearances for United, has
decided to move on.
Cardiff-born Giggs has his Uefa Pro Licence, a
mandatory qualification for managing in the Premier League, and has
never made any secret of his desire to move into management.Linked with Swansea last season, he felt he was ready to manage United, having served his apprenticeship under David Moyes and then Louis van Gaal.
But he was known to be less than impressed with how Van Gaal's exit was handled by United, when news of the Dutchman's sacking emerged moments after the club's FA Cup final success.
Giggs
was also disappointed to be overlooked in favour of former Chelsea and
Real Madrid boss Mourinho, whose appointment was confirmed in May.
Giggs
joined the United academy on his 14th birthday, turning professional
aged 17 in November 1990 and making his first-team debut against Everton
on 2 March, 1991.
He
won a record 13 league titles, two European Cups, four FA Cups and four
League Cups to become the most decorated British player of all time.
He
became a player-coach following the arrival of Moyes as manager in
2013, taking control of the first team for the final four games of the
season after the Scot's dismissal.
Giggs was then appointed as assistant-manager by Van Gaal in 2014.
Giggs
represented one of the final links to the Ferguson era - and given his
service and achievements at United, the club risk a potential PR
disaster in letting him leave.
The Welshman was largely
responsible for promoting exciting 18-year-old England striker Marcus
Rashford to the first team last season and is the embodiment of the
United traditions of a commitment to youth and attacking football.
However,
he was part of a static management team criticised by fans, pundits and
former players for a dull style of play which ultimately cost Dutchman
Van Gaal his job.

What next?

Led by executive
vice-chairman Ed Woodward, United are now a different club to the
trophy-winning juggernaut of the Sir Alex Ferguson era.
With a
revised transfer policy of world-class marquee signings and the abrupt
termination of Moyes and Van Gaal's contracts, along with the
appointment of Mourinho, winning has been prioritised ahead of longevity
and long-term planning.
Despite one senior member of the club's
hierarchy saying last year that Giggs "triple-ticked" many essential
components needed for the manager's job, he remains unproven at the
highest level.

Giggs
has made no secret of wanting to manage United in the future and it was
thought the club had a long-term plan with the same aim.
He is
unlikely to be short of offers from chairmen ready to give the Welshman
his first permanent managerial role, having passed all the relevant Uefa
coaching qualifications and served his apprenticeship at one of the
biggest clubs in the world.
Wales manager Chris Coleman has
previously said Giggs could benefit from the "spark" of stepping out of
his "comfort zone" at United, backing him to "cut his teeth somewhere
else and prove he has what it takes to go back there".
Similarly,
United goalkeeping great and former team-mate Peter Schmeichel said
Giggs should "learn the trade" of management at another club.